Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to systems, apparatuses and methods for tracking medical devices. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to systems, apparatuses and methods for tracking invasive medical devices using magnetic field sensitive viewing films.
Background of Related Art
During invasive surgery it is often desired to track location of medical devices (e.g., surgical instruments, implants, sponges, etc.) and internal features (e.g., tissue, organs, blood vessels, etc.) within the patient. Conventional tracking usually involves magnetic resonance or X-ray fluoroscopy systems. These systems rely on sophisticated and expensive equipment such as computers and displays for visualizing location of the medical devices. Further, in the case of X-ray fluoroscopy the patient and the attending medical staff are exposed to undesirable X-ray radiation.
There is continual need for medical device tracking systems, apparatuses and methods that provide for safe, accurate, real-time tracking of medical devices that do not require additional computing and visualization equipment.